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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28400358">A Family Moment</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/e_indulgence/pseuds/e_indulgence'>e_indulgence</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Snowball Fight</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 16:07:17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,091</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28400358</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/e_indulgence/pseuds/e_indulgence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When the Jeralt Mercenaries get snowed into a village in Faerghus, Jeralt takes the opportunity to give Byleth new experiences</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Nagamas Gifts</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Family Moment</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>For Clauidi! I hope you enjoy it!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Every year, as the weather started to turn, the Jeralt Mercenaries stopped accepting jobs in the Kingdom and headed south to the Empire. No one objected when Jeralt decided to head south - being caught in early or late snowstorms was unpleasant enough. The year Byleth turned 15, they were stuck in one such snowstorm. </p><p> </p><p>“Damn.” Jeralt was looking at the sky as they headed south. Byleth looked over to him, tilting her head. He pointed west, towards the sinking sun. “See how bright those clouds are?” She nodded. “That means it’s going to snow. I thought we were cutting it close, but…. We’re probably going to be stuck here for a bit. Sorry, kid.” She shrugged. “Stay here, I’m going to ride ahead and tell the others.” He rode on, and Byleth perked up, making sure to pay extra attention that no member of the mercenary group fell behind. The group arrived at a village before Jeralt had gotten back to her, so she fell back on their standard routine. She checked that everyone had stopped outside the village and the horses were tied up. Meanwhile, Jeralt went in to negotiate their lodgings for the night. It seemed like it took longer than usual, Byleth watching the sky as the clouds rolled in and it grew dark. Finally, Jeralt returned.</p><p>“All right, we found places for everyone. Come up for your assignments.” He hollered. He was swarmed by the mercenaries. Byleth watched the mess, waiting until Jeralt came and got her. Finally, he was done. He came over, and without words they headed over to a house.</p><p> </p><p>When Byleth woke in the morning, she first noticed there was more light than usual. The second thing she noticed was shouting in the background. It wasn’t panicked - it sounded rhythmic, planned, almost like the marching songs the mercenary group sometimes sang. Still, she looked around carefully, trying not to alert any potential enemies she was awake. All a scan of the room revealed was her father, whittling a chunk of wood. She went ahead and sat up, convinced it was safe.</p><p>“Morning.” Jeralt didn’t even need to look up to know she had woken up. Byleth slid out of bed, then shivered. She made a beeline for her jacket and pulled it on, then looked at Jeralt, still focused on his whittling.</p><p>“It’s late.” She said.</p><p>“Look outside.” She crossed over to the window and looked out. The world was covered in a thick blanket of snow. “You think we’d get anything done in those conditions?” He asked her. She shook her head.</p><p>“What’s that sound?” She asked.</p><p>“It’s Faerghus Founding Day. They’ll be singing and telling stories all day long. Waste of time if you ask me.” Jeralt shrugged. “Still, we’re here. Want to take a look?” She nodded, retrieving her dagger from under the pillow. He stowed his whittling knife and the chunk of wood in his pack, and led the way.</p><p> </p><p>Byleth thought the festival was…. Interesting. There was some sort of play going on in the town square, but she had come too late to know what it was. The armor on the guy on stage looked very fake, but his lance looked interesting - it looked like it was made out of bone. She tapped her father on his shoulder and pointed at the stage when he looked over.</p><p>“Probably some part of the tale of Loog, Faerghus’s first king. Dunno which.” He explained. Byleth shook her head.</p><p>“The lance.”</p><p>“Oh, that? It’s probably supposed to be Areadbhar, the royal family’s lance.” Byleth nodded, then looked around the square more. There were some stalls that looked like they were selling food, so she made a beeline to them, Jeralt following with a fond grin. </p><p>“You can only get one.” He warned her as she studied all the wares of the stall. She nodded, then pointed to a pastry, which he bought. She retreated to the edge of the square and leaned against a wall, eating and watching the crowd. He joined her, keeping one eye on her and one on the crowd. A few mercenaries had also joined in on the festivities and waved to them. Jeralt waved back, Byleth joining in after a short delay.</p><p>Once she finished her pastry, she straightened, pulling away from the wall.</p><p>“Seen enough?” He asked. She nodded. “I want to show you something else.” He headed down a road, Byleth falling into step behind him. They left the village, arriving in a small clearing outside it. The snow was deep and untouched here. Byleth stretched her strides to step in the footprints Jeralt left behind so she didn’t have to plow through the knee-deep snow herself.</p><p>“Turn around.” He instructed when they were in the middle of the clearing. She did so, carefully scanning the outskirts of the village. She then felt something cold and wet hit her back, and whirled around, grabbing her dagger. Behind her was just her father, holding up his hands in a gesture of peace while smiling.</p><p>“It was just me. Let me show you how to do that.” She nodded warily, and watched as he scooped snow up between his hands and patted it into a compact ball. He then handed her the snowball. “Try throwing it.” She threw it away from the village, taking note of its trajectory. “Good. Now….” He took a few steps back. “Let’s see who can hit each other more!” She nodded, dropping into a ready stance.</p><p>The going was awkward at first, Byleth learning how to make a snowball that would stay together as she threw it. But after a few attempts, it started feeling like one of their practice bouts. Just like those, she had to read where he was going to go and what he was going to do based on his body language, then react to avoid getting hit. Just like in battle, she felt alive, could feel the blood surging through her veins.</p><p>The sun had passed its apex and they were both soaked by the time Jeralt called a stop to their snowball fight. She was breathing heavily and could feel a slight smile on her face. As soon as she stopped moving she started feeling the cold. He came over and hugged her with one arm, ruffling her hair with his other hand.</p><p>“Was that fun?” He asked. She considered, then nodded.</p><p>“Good. Now let’s go get warm and dry.” She nodded again, more enthusiastically, and followed as he headed back towards their lodgings.</p>
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